Born in New York City he was educated at the Dwyer School of Art and went on to study textile design at FIT in Manhattan. It was while studying at FIT he began working as a DJ, playing soul and R&B at Better Days and then at The Gallery with Larry Levan and then at Sound Factory. When the Warehouse opened in Chicago in 1977 he was invited to appear on a regular basis until 1982, introduced to House Music he took the sound back to New York. After the collapse of his own New york club, the powerplant, he move into producing and recording. His earliest productions were Tears with Robert Owen (later of Fingers, Inc) and Jamie Principle's Baby Wants to Ride. Knuckles then started a lucrative line in remixing, partnering with David Morales as Def-Mix.